Widener and Philadelphia Union Bring Sports Career Paths to Life with High School Field Trips

For the fourth year in a row, Widener teamed up with the Philadelphia Union to host a series of field trips aimed at showing area high school students the many career paths available in the professional sports industry. 

The field trips are a chance for high schoolers to hear from Widener faculty and students and Union staff on topics including managing the game day and fan experience, including business strategies behind food and beverage sales, retail merchandising, and high-end hospitality suite and event operations. Students also learned about sports communications and public relations, ticket sales, sports physical therapy and more – all while getting a hands-on, behind-the-scenes look around Subaru Park and the WSFS Bank Sportsplex. 

“We want students to leave with a clearer understanding of the many career paths that exist in the sports industry and the confidence to see themselves in those roles,” said Professor Jeff Lolli, associate dean for undergraduate programs in the School of Business Administration. “By connecting them with professionals, exposing them to different career options, and helping them understand what it takes to succeed in the industry, we're showing them that there are many pathways into careers in professional sports aside from being an athlete.” 

While many of this year’s attendees are just beginning to think about their college and career plans, some former work-in-sports field trip attendees are already putting future career plans into motion, as students in Widener’s School of Business Administration. 

Patrick Hoang ’29, a finance major with minors in accounting and economics, took the field trip when he was a senior at Bishop Shanahan High School in 2024 as part of his school’s business prep program. Now a sophomore at Widener, he learned more about the university from the field trip and from his school counselor. 

“[At the time] I didn’t know at all where I was going to go for college or what major I wanted to pick,” Hoang said. “I think [the field trip] definitely opened my eyes to Widener. I knew it was going to cover a bunch of business careers and that I wanted to go into business, so that’s why I went.”

First-year Widener student Parker Jimenez had a similar experience. He also attended the field trip in 2024 when he was a junior at Springfield High School. He knew about Widener but wasn’t really thinking about his college plans at the time. 

“I didn’t really know what to do when I was choosing a major, but I love sports, and I knew I wanted to be in the business school,” said Jimenez.  

Now a sport and event management major, he’s hoping to follow in the footsteps of some of the career options he learned about at the field trip. 

“I really like the event part of it too. I love music, so I want to make that into a career throwing concerts and be an event manager.”

Hoang has always had an interest in numbers, and hopes to have a career in financial advising, helping people and companies make smart financial decisions. 

“During the field trip, they talked about sports management and marketing and communications and how you can transition from Widener into one of those roles or to another sports role or team,” he said. “I enjoy sports, so if I could work on the money side of that, I would.”

Both Hoang and Jimenez cite their favorite parts of the field trip as the inside access to the stadium, sharing that it was cool to see Union players practicing and getting an in-depth tour of the stadium.

This year’s field trips welcomed nearly 120 students from four high schools representing Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Added to this year’s schedule was a hands-on look at concession food and beverage operations with staff members from Aramark, including mocktail tasting and food sampling. 

Lolli represented Widener alongside several faculty, staff, and current students from the School of Business Administration, communications studies, and physical therapy programs. 

“At Widener, we're here to help guide students along their journey and prepare them for successful careers in a field they're passionate about. It's especially rewarding to see students who once attended this event as high schoolers now pursuing their degrees here. Their experiences show how valuable it can be for students to explore career paths early and ask questions. Watching that curiosity grow into meaningful academic and professional goals is exactly what we hope to see,” said Lolli. 
 

Learn more about Widener's partnership with the Philadelphia Union